The Black Swan CFO: Planning for What You Can't Predict

How do you rebuild a heritage automotive brand, manage risk through volatility, and keep finance close to the factory floor? Is there someone you’d like to see on The CFO Playbook? Email us at: pr@soldo.com In this episode of The CFO Playbook, David McClelland is joined by Andy Mullineaux, CFO at MOKE International, the British automotive brand reimagining the iconic MOKE as a fully electric, modern vehicle built in the Midlands. Andy shares what it takes to build a lean finance function inside a niche automotive business, from keeping teams small and data clean to making sure finance processes are embedded across operations, manufacturing, supply chain, and risk management. He explains why good inputs matter more than trying to predict the future of AI, and how preparing data properly today can make finance teams more effective tomorrow. In his conversation with David McClelland, Andy reflects on his journey from PwC to McLaren and then MOKE, including the lessons learned from scenario planning through crisis, navigating funding gaps, and working with world-class engineers. He also discusses the challenge of scaling a beloved heritage brand, the impact of US tariffs, why CFOs need to get out from behind the spreadsheet, and how asking “stupid” questions can be one of the smartest things a finance leader can do. Andy’s CFO Playbook principle: Get yourself a rubber duck, explaining the problem out loud might just solve it. Chapters: (00:00) Intro: from supercars to a heritage electric automotive brand (04:15) The story of MOKE, from failed military project to holiday icon (10:58) Building a lean finance function from a blank sheet of paper (14:00) AI, clean data, and preparing finance for future tools (20:30) Lessons from McLaren and the challenge of independent automotive brands (24:21) Why Andy’s CFO role is deeply embedded in operations (38:35) Scenario planning, funding gaps, and the arrival of the pandemic (46:11) Risk management, curiosity, and asking the obvious questions (59:31) MOKE’s US ambitions, tariffs, and market diversification (01:09:08) Rubber duck programming as a CFO leadership principle About Soldo Soldo is the proactive spend management solution that frees progressive businesses to accomplish more. Over 25,000 organisations across 31 countries use Soldo to end slow, messy, and inefficient spending, bringing financial agility and control over every expense. Soldo frees finance with a uniquely proactive approach to managing decentralised spending with real-time expense reporting. By combining a powerful spend management platform, a user-friendly mobile app, and prepaid and virtual cards, Soldo automates expense administration to eliminate inefficiencies in managing business spending. By proactively managing decentralised spend, organisations empower employees to spend when and where it's needed, keeping productivity high while avoiding month-end surprises. Founded in 2015 by Italian digital innovator Carlo Gualandri, Soldo is headquartered in London, with offices in Dublin, Milan, and Rome. Learn more: https://www.soldo.com/en-gb/ Useful Links 🔗 MOKE International – https://mokeinternational.com/ Andy Mullineaux – https://www.linkedin.com/in/andy-mullineaux-aca-27b32060/